


hook, line, and sinker

by ceae



Series: university drabbles [1]
Category: Our Life: Beginnings & Always (Visual Novel)
Genre: F/M, Pining, University
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-29
Updated: 2020-11-29
Packaged: 2021-03-09 21:22:18
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 875
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27772960
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ceae/pseuds/ceae
Summary: As the only person in university Jamie knew from back then, Baxter was inevitably subjected to never-ending stories of her hometown.
Relationships: Baxter Ward/Main Character | Jamie Last (Our Life)
Series: university drabbles [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2044810
Comments: 8
Kudos: 29





	hook, line, and sinker

“—then Miranda tells Terri to stop, but she kept on going and accidentally hit Ma’s face instead of Cove’s…” Jamie brought her palms up to her mouth to muffle her laughter, trying her hardest to keep down her volume so as to not break the cafe’s pleasant ambiance. She clearly remembered the looks on everyone’s faces as the whole thing went down—Ma never got hit on the face with a pie, so the whole experience was hilarious to her. Terri wasn’t the least bit amused about the situation despite being the one who initiated it, apparently horrified from the lack of respect she showed to Jamie’s parents. It arrived to the point where she refused to visit the Last residence for a few weeks out of shame.

Moving out of Sunset Bird for an out-of-state university, Jamie wasn’t expecting to come across at least one familiar person, so stumbling on Baxter a few months after the school year started was, to the both of them, a huge surprise. As the only person in university Jamie knew from back then, Baxter was inevitably subjected to never-ending stories of her hometown.

A low chuckle escaped Baxter’s throat as he brought his mug down to the table, “You bunch are as lively as ever.”

Jamie nodded, tentatively placing her palms around her mug. She frowned upon the realization that her coffee already grew cold from hours of blabbing off Baxter’s ears. Slowly, Jamie peeked at Baxter to check for the tiniest sliver of annoyance in his expression, any hint that desperately begged her to stop running off her mouth so he could catch his ears a break. She released a sigh of relief upon noticing that, in contrast to what she expected, he was actually enjoying himself.

Regardless, Jamie halted her stories for the meantime and took the first sip on her coffee. They have all the time in the world. Helping Baxter catch up with anything and everything on Sunset Bird can wait.

Their table fell into a comfortable silence. The hushed conversations of the customers overlapped into a monotonous lull, accompanying the mellow jazz music on the background and the gentle pitter-pattering of rain outside. Baxter’s gaze shifted from Jamie to the urban scenery beyond the glass windows next to them, watching rain droplets bounce off the myriad of colorful umbrellas.

Baxter took the initiative to speak up, eyes wistful as he stared off a distance. “I’d go back there if possible, but I barely have time nowadays.”

Jamie followed his line of sight. The numerous skyscrapers never ceased to amaze her, on how they managed to make the world appear so vast yet constricted at the same time, on how they easily towered over their tiny, vulnerable forms, on how they make her come to a realization that, for her entire life, she limited herself into the comforts of her hometown.

She reminisced the last few months of her stay in Sunset Bird, partly conscious of how the moments she spent with Baxter were the memories that stood out to her the most. Jamie could not deny the fact that he stuck out like a sore thumb in the town due to his upbringing, but somewhere along the way, she unwittingly fell for his hook, line, and sinker.

From that moment, it became extremely excruciating for Jamie to imagine what will happen years ahead—trying to consider the possibility of him being gone from her life in the near future made every scenario feel so severely lacking. It was as if he was the piece she never knew was missing from her puzzle until he came along, and all of a sudden he was gone and he became the only piece Jamie can't stop searching for.

People come and go, and she's painfully aware of the fact that he will eventually become nothing more than a fleeting memory from her past. In the back of her mind, she wondered when exactly they would drift apart.

Taking another sip of her coffee, she glanced at Baxter. His presence grounded her back to reality, serving as a reminder that they were still here in the present. Propping her elbow to the table, Jamie leaned forward and placed her chin on her palm. “Hey, Baxter. The next time you plan to go there…"

Brown orbs landed to hers. “Yes?”

Jamie's voice fell to a delicate and hushed tone like she was about to tell him her deepest secret, even though she would only ask him something so selfish on her part—if she didn't have a concrete answer on when they will go to their separate ways, she may as well make the most out of their time together. “Would it be fine if I join you?”

He blinked for a second, visibly a bit taken aback from the sudden request. Without missing a beat, he took his almost empty mug and brought it up to his lips, buying time to cover up his initial lack of response. “Absolutely, I don’t see why not.” He replied, the upward quirk forming on the corners of his lips well-hidden by his mug. “It’s your hometown, after all.”

The twinkle of gratitude dancing in his eyes had her heart thrumming.

**Author's Note:**

> greetings, everyone! i plan to turn this into a series of one-shots of jamie and baxter being in the same university. for easy navigation, all one-shots will be posted under a series. 
> 
> kudos and comments are not needed, but are highly appreciated! they always make my day :D
> 
> on a last note, thank you for reading! hope you enjoyed it. see you again soon :)


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